Game apparatus.



L. B. TAYLOR.

GAME APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED 11:13.13, 1912.

1,031,488, Patented July 2', 1912.

COLUMBIA PLANOURAPH co., WASHINGTON, n. c.

LYMAN B. TAYLOR, OF LYNNFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

GAME APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 2, 1912.

Application filed February 13, 1912 Serial No. 677,375.

The object of the present invention is to including mechaprovide a game apparatus by a blow and to nism adapted to be struck indicate the relative value of the blow, apparatus being particularly designed to utilize the elements of the game of baseball in such way that the blow may be struck by an implement such as a baseball bat, and

the relative force of the blow may be shown by visual indicating means upon a board bearing a representation of a baseball field.

A game apparatus of this character is illustrated of the United States, 949,385, issued Februar r 15, 1910. The indicating means illustrated in that patent is entirely mechanical and consists of an indicating pointer anda dial with which the pointer cooperates to 1ndicate the relative value of a blow, the indi-' cator being actuated by the force of the blow and the dial being arranged upon a board which bears a representation of a baseball field.

The present invention consists in an improvement whereby electrical indicating means is substituted for the mechanical indicating means shown in the said patent.

Of the accompanying drawings .which illustrate one form in which the present invention may be embodied: Figure 1 represents a front elevation of my improved game apparatus. Fig. 2 represents a vertical section from front to rear through the same, as indicated by line 2-2 of Fig. 1, the electrical wiring being illustrated in a conventional manner usually adopted for representing wiring diagrams. Fig. 3 represents a section indicated by line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts wherever they occur.

The apparatus comprises a suitable base or frame 10 upon which is mounted a board 11. The front face of the board may bear a representation of a playing field of any desired character, or may bear other illustrative characters descriptive of the game which it is desired to simulate. In the present instance a representation of a baseball the and described in Letters Patent "dashpot may be used field is illustrated upon the board, said representation including the essential elements of a baseball field,such as the diamond, theoutfield, the-players, and other desired elements; Arranged at desirable locations upon the board. are a plurality of electrical indicating devices, which in the present instance are shown as incandescent lamps 12 whose function is to indicate the relative value of a blow which may be struck upon a ball or other device such as that indicated at 13. An implement such as a baseball bat may be used by a'person playing the game to strike the blow upon the ball.

As shown by Fig. 2, the ball is aflixed to the forward end of a plunger 14. The plunger is arranged to slide horizontally in suitable bearings 15, 16, and is mounted at a convenient distance above the floor'upon which the apparatus stands, so that the ball will occupy approximately the same relation to the batter as a fairly-delivered ball in the game of baseball. The plunger is provided with cushioning means for resisting the force ofthe blow, said means including a cylinder or dashpot- 1] through which the plunger extends, a piston 18 affixed to the plunger, and a vent 19 for the air which is compressed in the cylinder. As an additional cushioning means a compressing spring 20 is arranged in the cylinder between the rear end thereof and the piston so as to be compressed by the piston. The without the spring, or the spring may be used without the dashpot, or they may be used in conjunction with each other, as desired.

The dashpot prevents too sudden movement of the plunger because the speed of movement is limited by the capacity of the vent. The dashpot is therefore adapted to prevent the movable element from moving so far as to do any damage, and when the dashpot is used in conjunction with the spring 20, it avoids danger of breaking the spring. v

For the purpose of forming the desired electrical connection to give a visual indication of the force of a blow, the lamps 12 may be connected by wiring in the manner represented by Fig.2. A suitable source of electrical current, such for example as a battery of cells, indicated at 21, has one conductor 22 connected by suitable branches to each of the lamps, the lamps being connected in shunts as distinguished from series, so

that the current will illuminate but one at a time. the respective lamps are indicated at 23,

these conductors connecting the respectivelamps with a series of contacts 24:. The contacts are secured to a suitable insulating base 25 and are arranged so that a movable contact 26 carried by the plunger will be adapted to pass over them successively when a blow is struck. A return conductor 22 which is grounded to asuitable part of theframe, such for example as the bearing15,

completes the circuit back to the source of.

.current.

For the purpose of holding the movable.

contact upon the farthest contact 24 to which it is driven by the blow, the plunger is provided with a toothed rack 27 wvith which a stationary retaining pawl 28 cooperates. The pawl as shown is pivotally mounted at 29 in a suitable part of the frame,in the present instance, in the upper side of the bearing 15. The hearing, as

through one of the lamps when the force ofthe blow has been expended.

In carrying out the simulation of the game of baseball, the board 11 may bear designations close to the several lamps,such, for example, as one-base hit, ftwo-base hit home run, foul ball and any other terms commonly used in the game.

A releasing rod 31 is provided for disengaging the pawl 28 from the rack 27 whereby the plunger may be released after a blow has been struck, to restore the apparatus to its initial condition. This rod, as shown by Fig. 2, is pivotally connected to the pawl 28 and is adapted to slide in a bearing 32. A finger-piece or head 33 is secured to the front end of the rod, and a spring 3 L is coiled about the rod and compressed between the head and hearing so that it will tend to keep the pawl in engagement with the rack.

It is obvious that other electrical devices instead of the lamps 12 may be employed to give a visual indication, and that it is immaterial whether the series of contacts 24 are stationary and contact 26 movable, or whether the series of contacts 24: are mov Individual conductors connected toable and contact 26 stationary. It is also. obvious that any other form of releasing device may be employed.

Having thus explained the nature of my said invention and described a way of constructing and using the same, although without attempting to set forth all the forms in which it may be made or all the modes of its use, what I claim is 1. In an exercising apparatus, a plunger adapted to be moved longitudinally by a blow, a head of resilient material on one end of said plunger for receiving the operative blow, cushioning 'means acting on said plunger to resist movement from a blow, automatically operative elements for holding said plunger against return movement, a plurality of electrically operative indicating devices, a source of electric current, and relatively movable switch elements for connecting said source of current successively with said indicating devices to indicate the force of the operating blow,-one of said switch elements being a single contact, and the other being a series of contacts connected respectively with the several indicating devices, one of said switch elements being stationary and the other being carried by said plunger.

2. In an exercising apparatus, a movable element adapted to be operatively moved by a blow,.cushioning means act-ing upon said movable element to resist movement from a blow, automatically operative elements for holding said movable element against return movement, a plurality of electrically operative indicating devices, a source of electric current, and relatively movable cooperative switch elements of which one is stationary and the other carried by said movable element, one of said switch elements being a series of contacts connected respectively with the several indicating devices, and the other of said elements being a single contact connected with said source of power, the contacting face of said single contact being of approximately the same area as that of each contact in said series, to close a circuit through one of said indicating devices and to exclude all of the other indicating devices from the circuit when the operative movement of said movable element is ended.

In testimony whereof I have afiixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

LYMAN B. TAYLOR.

Witnesses:

. W. P. ABELL,

P. W. PnzzE'r'rI.

Copies of this patent'may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

